Late afternoon glowing light and a fine subject got me part of the way to where I wanted to be. A handful of shots like this helped me refine my camera settings so I was ready for the moment I hoped to capture.

In the previous post I wrote about manipulating inadequate images to see if I could make something of them. The post depressed me a little, so I set out on Christmas Eve to make a purposeful photo. I walked over to Boardman Road during the last hour of the day, when I knew the light would be beautiful.

A couple of horses were snacking on the nubby grass in their corral, so I settled against the fence and waited. I snapped a few pictures of the horses grazing, and a few frames of them standing around. Then, one turned to the other and they nuzzled. I was ready, and I KNEW as I depressed the shutter release that I got the shot I wanted. Just as a home run hitter knows at the moment of contact that a ball is going to clear the fence, I knew instantly that this was the one frame, and that it would require minimal post-processing.

I kept my head in the game, so I knew the instant I squeezed the shutter that I had gotten the shot I came for.

Part of the day’s success came from the beautiful light and the handsome subjects, but the key ingredient was my presence in the moment. I went out to make – rather than take – a photograph, and was rewarded for my efforts.

Buoyed by the knowledge that I had shot well, I stopped on the way home and caught this intense fellow checking me out from behind fence and foliage.